{"id":15171,"date":"2015-07-12T05:04:48","date_gmt":"2015-07-12T11:04:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/rivercruiseadvisor.com\/?p=15171"},"modified":"2019-09-26T06:06:38","modified_gmt":"2019-09-26T10:06:38","slug":"barging-in-the-south-of-france-croisieuropes-anne-marie-day-8-exploring-sete","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/rivercruiseadvisor.com\/2015\/07\/barging-in-the-south-of-france-croisieuropes-anne-marie-day-8-exploring-sete\/","title":{"rendered":"Barging In The South Of France: CroisiEurope’s Anne-Marie, Day 8, Exploring Sete"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\u00a9\u00a02015<\/a>

Sete \u00a9\u00a02015 Ralph Grizzle<\/p><\/div>\n

My barge\u00a0trip from Arles to Sete took place on CroisiEurope\u2019s Anne-Marie June 17 through June 26, with pre- and post-trip overnights and activities. This post picks up\u00a0on day eight\u00a0of our adventure, June 24, when we\u00a0explored Sete.<\/em><\/p>\n

As noted in yesterday\u2019s post<\/a>, this morning we have a special tour ahead of us. This tour is not offered by CroisiEurope; rather it\u2019s something I set up for our group: a Gourmet Walking Tour that will allow us to explore Sete’s colorful\u00a0markets and a few of the food outlets that serve up regional specialities.<\/p>\n

Of course, there will be a wine-tasting at the end of the tour. C\u2019est la vie<\/em>.<\/p>\n

In the afternoon, we\u2019ll head out for an oyster sampling along the \u00c9tang de Thau.<\/p>\n

Gourmet Market Tour<\/h2>\n
\"\u00a9\u00a02015<\/a>

Nancy McGhee, wearing a hat and pictured \u00a0far left, pointing at fresh apricots as we tour the outdoor market in Sete.\u00a0\u00a9\u00a02015 Ralph Grizzle<\/p><\/div>\n

To explore the markets in Sete, we had an expert guide with us. Owner of\u00a0Absolutely Southern France, Nancy McGhee has been running her top-rated Gourmet Walking Tour for years. A Canadian living in Sete, Nancy\u00a0consistently gets rave reviews from those who have done her tours, so it was a no-brainer to choose her to lead us through Sete. Hers isn’t just a walk-through-the-markets tour. It\u2019s an educational visit, where we learned such things\u00a0as how to eat an oyster properly. Funny, I thought I knew. I did not. Chew a little to release the flavor, I learned, and wash it down with a glass of PicPoul de Pinet wine. Best oyster I’ve ever had.<\/p>\n

Over the years, Nancy has made many friends at the markets in Sete, which added a personal element to her tour for us today. We did tastings with people who she knows by first name and from them, we learned about the regional fish, meat, fruit and vegetables, along with special recipes.<\/p>\n

\"\u00a9\u00a02015<\/a>

Sampling olives and mussels inside the market in Sete. \u00a9\u00a02015 Ralph Grizzle<\/p><\/div>\n

\"\u00a9\u00a02015<\/a>

Now that\u2019s a knife! \u00a9\u00a02015 Ralph Grizzle<\/p><\/div>\n

\"\u00a9\u00a02015<\/a>

Fun talking with the vendors at the market. \u00a9\u00a02015 Ralph Grizzle<\/p><\/div>\n

\"\u00a9\u00a02015<\/a>

Nancy shows us how cherries are priced according to their category\/quality. \u00a9\u00a02015 Ralph Grizzle<\/p><\/div>\n

\"\u00a9\u00a02015<\/a>

Cherries and apricots. \u00a9\u00a02015 Ralph Grizzle<\/p><\/div>\n

\"\u00a9\u00a02015<\/a>

We learned\u00a0how to eat an oyster, the French way.\u00a9\u00a02015 Ralph Grizzle<\/p><\/div>\n

\"\u00a9\u00a02015<\/a>

We stopped at a local cheese shop.\u00a0\u00a9\u00a02015 Ralph Grizzle<\/p><\/div>\n

\"\u00a9\u00a02015<\/a>

Like works of art, wheels of cheese. \u00a9\u00a02015 Ralph Grizzle<\/p><\/div>\n

\"\u00a9\u00a02015<\/a>

Lovely ladies on Gourmet Market Tour today \u00a0in Sete. \u00a9\u00a02015 Ralph Grizzle<\/p><\/div>\n

\"\u00a9\u00a02015<\/a>

Nancy introduced us to a \u00a0local sweet, Z\u00e9zettes de S\u00e8te\u00a0in her favorite Sete\u00a0patisserie.\u00a0\u00a9\u00a02015 Ralph Grizzle<\/p><\/div>\n

\"\u00a9\u00a02015<\/a>

We visited Sophie Cianni & Company, which specializes in\u00a0Tielle, an octopus pie that was imported from Gaeta to S\u00e8te by Italian immigrants in the late 19th century.\u00a0\u00a9\u00a02015 Ralph Grizzle<\/p><\/div>\n

\"\u00a9\u00a02015<\/a>

Sophie still uses her grandmother\u2019s recipe. \u00a9\u00a02015 Ralph Grizzle<\/p><\/div>\n

\"\u00a9\u00a02015<\/a>

Samples for everyone. The taste? A little like pizza.\u00a0\u00a9\u00a02015 Ralph Grizzle<\/p><\/div>\n

\"\u00a9\u00a02015<\/a>

Prep table for the Tielle.\u00a0\u00a9\u00a02015 Ralph Grizzle<\/p><\/div>\n

\"\u00a9\u00a02015<\/a>

Nancy informs us about the largest-wine producing region in France, the Languedoc. \u00a9\u00a02015 Ralph Grizzle<\/p><\/div>\n

\"\u00a9\u00a02015<\/a>

Thomas Jefferson enjoyed the wines of this region. \u00a9\u00a02015 Ralph Grizzle<\/p><\/div>\n

\"\u00a9\u00a02015<\/a>

Nancy tells us about water jousting, a popular annual event in Sete. \u00a9\u00a02015 Ralph Grizzle<\/p><\/div>\n

Lunch on Board Anne-Marie<\/h2>\n

After our Gourmet Market Tour, we returned to Anne-Marie for lunch. Better go light. We’d had a morning of sampling, and in the afternoon, we\u00a0had\u00a0an afternoon excursion to sample fresh oysters along the \u00c9tang de Thau, the\u00a0second largest lake in France.<\/p>\n

\"Chef<\/a>

Chef Romain prepares a beautiful salmon dish. \u00a9\u00a02015 Ralph Grizzle<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Tasted<\/a>

Tasted as good as it looked. \u00a9 2015 Ralph Grizzle<\/p><\/div>\n

\"More<\/a>

More cheese to sample. \u00a9 2015 Ralph Grizzle<\/p><\/div>\n

Sampling Oysters Along The\u00a0\u00c9tang de Thau<\/h2>\n

We headed out to the \u00c9tang de Thau after lunch. The basin is composed of several lagoons, and connects t0 the Canal du Rhone, Bordeaux, S\u00e8te, and the Mediterranean.<\/p>\n

The \u00c9tang de Thau is dotted with harbors, villages, and beautiful landscapes. The northern part of the basin is mostly occupied by fishing villages. These villages not only produce delicious fish, but also a large supply of fresh shellfish, especially oysters. Because of the high quality of the water in the basin, the product doesn\u2019t have to be processed, and can be eaten as soon as it is harvested.<\/p>\n

We visited an oyster museum and later sampled fresh oysters, with a local wine \u2014 of course.<\/p>\n

\"\u00a9\u00a02015<\/a>

Learning how oysters and mussels are farmed at the museum. \u00a9\u00a02015 Ralph Grizzle<\/p><\/div>\n

\"\u00a9\u00a02015<\/a>

Sampling oysters at Chez La Tchepe. \u00a9\u00a02015 Ralph Grizzle<\/p><\/div>\n

\"\u00a9\u00a02015<\/a>

Authentic and very French, our oyster-sampling venue. \u00a9\u00a02015 Ralph Grizzle<\/p><\/div>\n

Gala Dinner<\/h2>\n

We returned to Anne-Marie for our last night on board and the “Gala” dinner.<\/p>\n

\"\u00a9\u00a02015<\/a>

Welcome aboard for our last night on Anne-Marie. \u00a9\u00a02015 Ralph Grizzle<\/p><\/div>\n

The crew bid us farewell. I think they enjoyed the trip almost as much as we did. Ours is\u00a0not over yet, however. We still have one more full day when we’ll enjoy a cooking class, visit a mansion in Montpelier and overnight in a hotel before heading home.<\/p>\n

\"\u00a9\u00a02015<\/a>

Our crew on Anne-Marie. \u00a9\u00a02015 Ralph Grizzle<\/p><\/div>\n

\"\u00a9\u00a02015<\/a>

Our group on Anne-Marie. \u00a9\u00a02015 Ralph Grizzle<\/p><\/div>\n

\"\u00a9\u00a02015<\/a>

The table set for our gala dinner. \u00a9\u00a02015 Ralph Grizzle<\/p><\/div>\n

\"\u00a9\u00a02015<\/a>

On last dessert. \u00a9\u00a02015 Ralph Grizzle<\/p><\/div>\n

Because one of Seabourn’s vessels needed to docked in Sete, Anne-Marie moved to Frontignan, only about 10\u00a0kilometers away from Sete’s city center. After dinner, Monica and I walked into the center of this small village, which appeared to be dead asleep until we turned a corner and discovered karaoke being performed outdoors in the town square.<\/p>\n

It was a lovely night, and we took a table for two, joining French families and couples who were enjoying the performance put on by\u00a0some talented – and not-so-talented – crooners. One more glass of wine? Why not? We were caught up the joie de vivre<\/em>\u00a0and loving every minute of our trip here in this beautiful region. I was glad our trip would not be ending when we disembarked the barge. Tomorrow, we will learn something about preparing French food ourselves\u00a0after one last night on Anne-Marie. As we finished our glasses of wine, a young girl performed “La Vie En Rose,” the signature song of Edith Pilaf that roughly translates to “Life Through Rose-Colored Glasses.” That seemed like an appropriate ending to our day in Sete and our time on CroisiEurope’s Anne-Marie.<\/p>\n

\"frontignan\"<\/a>

Our barge Anne-Marie moved from Sete to the tiny village of Frontignan, where we disembarked after six wonderful nights on board.<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

My barge\u00a0trip from Arles to Sete took place on CroisiEurope\u2019s Anne-Marie June 17 through June 26, with pre- and post-trip overnights and activities. This post picks up\u00a0on day eight\u00a0of our adventure, June 24, when we\u00a0explored Sete. As noted in yesterday\u2019s post, this morning we have a special tour ahead of us. This tour is not […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":17160,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"full-width-content","footnotes":""},"categories":[507,171,22,25,24,41,544],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/rivercruiseadvisor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15171"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/rivercruiseadvisor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/rivercruiseadvisor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rivercruiseadvisor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rivercruiseadvisor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=15171"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/rivercruiseadvisor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15171\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rivercruiseadvisor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/17160"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/rivercruiseadvisor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=15171"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rivercruiseadvisor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=15171"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rivercruiseadvisor.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=15171"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}